KILGORE, TX—Region 7 Education Service Center recently named Hallsville East Elementary School’s Stacey Perkins and Hallsville High School’s Jennifer Roberts as the 2014 Region 7 Elementary and Secondary Teachers of the Year. Perkins and Roberts will represent Region 7 as its nominees for the 2014 Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA) Elementary and Secondary Teachers of the Year.

“Hallsville ISD has been blessed with truly outstanding teachers for many years,” said Hallsville ISD Superintendent Jim Dunlap. “Knowing what great teachers Ms. Perkins and Ms. Roberts are, it is not a surprise to us they were chosen. This recognition by other professionals speaks to the quality of all HISD staff. We are truly blessed.”

Region 7 2014 Elementary Teacher of the Year Stacey Perkins

Perkins began her career in education in Region 7 in 1993 as a sixth grade language arts teacher at Pine Tree ISD. In 2000, Perkins moved to post-secondary education to work in the curriculum editing and development department at LeTourneau University, as well as served as an adjunct faculty member. Perkins has been co-teaching third grade special education at Hallsville East Elementary since her return to teaching in 2009.

Perkins attributes her philosophy of teaching and her passion for helping special education students to her own experiences of being a mother to her daughter who also has special needs.

“In discovering how to help my daughter meet academic and social goals, I discovered in myself a passion for working with struggling learners,” Perkins said. “Every day is a quest to discover how to make my time at my horseshoe table the most impactful for my small group.”

Perkins said each year is a new year to find better ways to scaffold, modify, instruct, differentiate, assess and pace her teaching so that her students are able to master all of their skills.

“Next year stretches in front of me, promising to be the year that I will reach all students with all content,” said Perkins. “I am a lifelong learner, captive to a cycle of teaching students, learning from my experiences, and applying what I’ve learned so that next year I am better equipped to begin the cycle with new faces at my horseshoe table.”

In representing Region 7 at the state level, Perkins said her message to her colleagues is a message to not be discouraged by the “nevers” of the teaching profession, such as “never will budgets be large enough to supply all the needs and wants of teachers,” “never will an educator’s job be easy,” “never will a state-mandated assessment be perfect.”

“We must embrace the ‘nevers’ of teaching and put them to work in our favor,” she said. “Approached with the right perspective, they are not the pitfalls to our careers. Rather, these ‘nevers’ benefit educators by casting a spotlight where our time, talent and energy are most crucial and best spent.”

Perkins said she is honored to represent all Region 7 teachers at the state level.